Is flashing the highbeams to warn other driver Illegal in Texas?

[majormadmax]

The revenue whine is old and, for most places, completely untrue. I have studied the budgets of many Texas cities, and ALL court finess collected amount to from less than one to at five percent of budget revenue.

It's only a means for the guilty to justify their actions in breaking the law. It's never their fault, the blame has to be shifted to someone else. God forbid they actually man up and be accountable for what they did!

No, it's revenue generation. Or entrapment. Or the speed limits are set artificially low. I've heard them all, and they're all bullshit.

It's pathetic.

 

[jocat54]

Anybody here old enough or been around San Antonio long enough to remember the Selma ....uh....enforcement on I35? They would stop you for 1 mile over. I gotta believe that was a speed trap. This was back in the late 60's early 70's.

 

[ChunkyMonkey]

I would have to say, show me the proof. I hear that all the time about my jurisdiction, yet not a single person has owned up with evidence. I do have a friend, who actually showed me the ticket, for 4mph over in Cibolo! Lol......I warned her, lol

 

[Charlie]

I remember Selma. Made extra efforts to stay away from that area on I-35. Actually, by definition, it's not a "trap" unless an officer entices you to do something illegal and then cites you for it (correct me if I'm wrong). They may have had ........ "less than zero tolerance" enforcement (whatever tha' hell that means!).

 

[jocat54]

I would have to say, show me the proof. I hear that all the time about my jurisdiction, yet not a single person has owned up with evidence. I do have a friend, who actually showed me the ticket, for 4mph over in Cibolo! Lol......I warned her, lol

Hell, I'm doing good to remember that long ago much less have any proof.

 

[ChunkyMonkey]

Lol.......come on pops.....

 

[Charlie]

What a thread! Working on page 6! SofaKingFine!!!

It took me many years earlier in life to find a sure way of not getting a ticket. Instead of breaking the law and then bitchin' about who or what made you do it and whose "fault" it was, etc. ...............................just don't break the speed limit (or other laws). I know that sounds simplistic but...............it is what it is.

(Borrowed your sig line Shortround, .........hope ya' don't mind, thanks!)

 

[dalto]

Honestly, you guys have no idea how good you have it.

I spent the majority of life in Southeastern Massachusetts.
- The speed traps weren't a couple of hours every Tuesday. They were 8-10 hours per day on the "good" roads.
- There were four lane straight roads without a house in sight where the speed limits were 35 mph
- I had never heard of anyone getting a warning unless they were young and female
- If you got a flat tire the officer would come and tag your car and have it towed immediately. Even were just finishing the tire when the officer pulled up.
- In many towns the officers had quotas.
- Tiny little towns would write thousands of tickets per month. It was about paying for and justifying the size of the police force not about income for the town.
- They were not friendly, under any circumstances(excluding the young and female clause above)

A couple of disclaimers to the above. First, I haven't lived there for 9 years so things could have changed. Second, I am sure there were some exceptions, but I never ran into them.

Since moving to Texas I have had few reasons to have run-ins with the local law enforcement. When I have, they have been both polite and fair.

 

[majormadmax]

It took me many years earlier in life to find a sure way of not getting a ticket. Instead of breaking the law and then bitchin' about who or what made you do it and whose "fault" it was, etc. ...............................just don't break the speed limit (or other laws). I know that sounds simplistic but...............it is what it is.

That, good sir, is the bottom line!

 

[Texasjack]

The revenue whine is old and, for most places, completely untrue. I have studied the budgets of many Texas cities, and ALL court finess collected amount to from less than one to at five percent of budget revenue.

"...I know of no police officer or group of police officers who have ever been commended for writing less speeding tickets. Would it not seem logical that if the number of speeding arrests are reduced and the number of accidents are also reduced then either the traffic volume is down or the cops have done their job in speed enforcement? Yet my experience has shown that any time there is a reduction in the number of tickets issued, there is a knee jerk reaction to castigate the cops who are writing less tickets...

...Speeding tickets are big business. They permit and justify the employment of an army of civil servants including police, their supervisors, court clerks, accountants, judges, secretaries, stenographers, bailiffs, computer operators, programmers, district attorneys, and more."

- Quotes from former NY state patrolman James Eagan in the book I cited earlier

 

[scap99]

Case in point: the red light cameras in Houston. It was sold that it was a safety issue, not money. When they were voted down and turned off, suddenly it was a money issue. The City was going to lose millions in revenue.

 

[98f150]

Here in Austin speeding tickets are all about money for the city. The size of the fines for traffic violations tell me this has to be true. I have to believe that being stopped and given a $40.00 dollar traffic ticket would teach me a lesson just as well as a $300.00 one.

 

[M. Sage]

It's only a means for the guilty to justify their actions in breaking the law. It's never their fault, the blame has to be shifted to someone else. God forbid they actually man up and be accountable for what they did!

No, it's revenue generation. Or entrapment. Or the speed limits are set artificially low. I've heard them all, and they're all bullshit.

It's pathetic.

In many cases, the limits are artificially low. If they aren't, then why does raising them lower the amount of fatalities?

 

[majormadmax]

In many cases, the limits are artificially low. If they aren't, then why does raising them lower the amount of fatalities?

Really, please provide evidence to support both claims.

Speed limits on Texas roads (including city streets) are generally set by statute (TTC §545.352 Prima Facie Speed Limits) meaning, “on the face of it,” they are reasonable and prudent under normal conditions. Details on the process can be found here, to include who has the authority to determine those factors.

Obviously the limits can also change, as the recent removal of nighttime limits and the increase on the 410 Loop in San Antonio show; but while I have heard claims such as yours for years that they are set "arificially low" and "raising them lowers the amount of fatalities," I have yet to ever have anyone provide data to support that!

Most posted speed limits are based on the 85th percentile speed, so as far as I am concerned, that is a fair standard.

Considering how poorly the majority of people drive in this state, I don't see how any increase in speed could result in safer roads.

Most importantly, it doesn't matter if someone agrees with the limit or not; it is the law and exceeding it has its consequences. If someone is adamant that the limit at a certain location is set too low, there are formal means to try and get it raised. Simply ignoring should not be an option...

 

[Texas1911]

Just an FYI ... calling the police d-bags, or painting them with a broad brush won't be tolerated. If you got a beef with a particular officer, and he/she just happens to be a d-bag then that's fine, but from my experience ... the police like giving traffic violations about as much as you like getting them.

To date, I've never received a speeding ticket. Been pulled over probably 5 times for it, up to and including doing 15 MPH over. Wanna know my secret? Be courteous, honest, and think of their safety. It's not rocket surgery.

 

[bagged02]

Pulled over honestly about 30 true times in my life. Im 30. I have recieved about 3-5 tickets at the most. Losts of warning and IMO cops just wanting to look at the car I was driving. Lots of older model cars they could have prob found a reason just to pull me over, custom vehicles and being stupid also. SPeeding, and stupid kid stuff when I was just out of high school or still in high school.
When I am see the police office turning around, or as SOON as he lights me up, I immediately PULL over asap. Within 20 seconds to stopping. I always do it in the safest avaiable part where I am at. Even if this means the rare incident of driving a half mile up the road to exit off the highway. I dont want a police officer on the highway at a stop if I can help it, and they do respect that a lot. I have all my documents ready and actually hanging out the window for him. He knows that are in not a threat for sure. Knows I know I probably know what I did because I pulled over so fast. Normally I am always honest, "why are you speeding sir", me-" I honestly dont know, just stupid I guess sir, Im so sorry, dang I feel stupid sir". Normally but not always I get a warning. Many Many yes sir no sir's. I will say from experience I also know I get warnings and never get pulled out of the car to get searched is because I AM WHITE. Thats brutally honest. I have driving with 3-4 of my older mexican buddies that own their own buisness' and only those 2 times have we all been basically been ttreated as if it was a felony stop. Bunch of BS, but its the truth as I see it.

 

[ChunkyMonkey]

Pulled over honestly about 30 true times in my life. Im 30. I have recieved about 3-5 tickets at the most. Losts of warning and IMO cops just wanting to look at the car I was driving. Lots of older model cars they could have prob found a reason just to pull me over, custom vehicles and being stupid also. SPeeding, and stupid kid stuff when I was just out of high school or still in high school.
When I am see the police office turning around, or as SOON as he lights me up, I immediately PULL over asap. Within 20 seconds to stopping. I always do it in the safest avaiable part where I am at. Even if this means the rare incident of driving a half mile up the road to exit off the highway. I dont want a police officer on the highway at a stop if I can help it, and they do respect that a lot. I have all my documents ready and actually hanging out the window for him. He knows that are in not a threat for sure. Knows I know I probably know what I did because I pulled over so fast. Normally I am always honest, "why are you speeding sir", me-" I honestly dont know, just stupid I guess sir, Im so sorry, dang I feel stupid sir". Normally but not always I get a warning. Many Many yes sir no sir's. I will say from experience I also know I get warnings and never get pulled out of the car to get searched is because I AM WHITE. Thats brutally honest. I have driving with 3-4 of my older mexican buddies that own their own buisness' and only those 2 times have we all been basically been ttreated as if it was a felony stop. Bunch of BS, but its the truth as I see it.

I call b.s. "because I'm white." Whatever......then you should be filing complaints with your proof. Otherwise it's your own prejudice mind creating that scenario. Yeah, you riding around with three other people, I would treat more cautious too, that's an officer safety standpoint, not race, culture, or prejudice. People rarely get pulled out of their car and searched unless the officer has other issues or beliefs pertaining to either Terry or McCarty case law......

 

[coboblack]

LOL, every single one of my LEO friends tell me they could follow virtually anyone for less than a mile and find at least two legit reasons to pull somebody over if they wanted to.

OP, I can't find the case, but from what I've heard it's protected free speech as already stated.

Yeah, all of my LEO friends and family members say the same thing. Not only is there soooo many little laws that they can officially pull you over...a cop ridding on your ass makes people nervous and a lot of people screw up when they get nervous.

Its almost impossible to follow every law because there are the little rules that you forget, like how many feet before a turn you need to turn on your blinker or how long you need to do this before you do that. They can get you on a technicality if they want to if they follow you for long enough. Especially if your not on a straight away and you start doing a lot of turns at lights and stop sighs. But they aren't really going to start following you like that, unless they have reason to.

 

[coboblack]

......

Do you get bothered when people call you certain titles, or don't refer to you a proper way? Or do you know any officers like that? I remember one night I got pulled over on my way home because I forgot about my inspection sticker and an officer pulled me over, he gave me a ticket and explained to me that as long as I got it taken care of soon, I could get it dismissed and just pay the court fees. I thanked him for the information and went along towards my house and then another officer pulled me over for my inspection sticker.

When he walked up, I was polite, I always "Yes sir" and "no sir" and I explained that I just received a ticket 5 min ago and I'm in direct route to my house and will take it to get inspected before work tomorrow. He gave me a speech about how he could do this or that and that another officer might pull me over and could write me a ticket or something. I forget what it was, it didn't feel douchey at the time...just like he was being informative and as he wrapped up the conversation I said something casual like "Alright buddy, thanks"...I don't remember what it was, but it was one of those habitual things I would say to a customer and it just came out.

Well he stops, turns around and walks back towards my car and points at me with a disgusted look and goes "Hey, I'm not your BUDDY, I am OFFICER so and so or MISTER so and so". I was so caught off guard, I reverted back to instinctive habitual speech and almost said something like "ok buddy, I'm sorry" and kind of caught myself and was "ok bu- sir, I apologize". And then he walked back to his car.

I was like "whoah"...wth was that about. Is there any LEO's that you know that get annoyed with being called anything other than officer or mister?
(I know most won't, just curious if you know any like this and why)

 

[ChunkyMonkey]

I could care less....I don't even introduce myself as Officer.....my uniform makes that clear. I introduce my self the same way since day one, but use my first and last name. I don't get worked up if people call me Dawg, bro, homie, boss, Hooda, 5-0, etc...